I’d like to introduce…

Edward George Turner, known affectionately to his family and friends as Ted, was a kind hearted, gregarious, right jolly English gent, loved by all who knew him. He was born on the 27th of June 1911 at Blake Cottage, Horn Street in Winslow, Buckinghamshire, where his father was employed as head groom to Mr Gosling of Blake House.

And His Lovely Wife…

Miss Phyllis Mary Collins, daughter of William Collins, publican of the George Inn in Winslow, which is where Ted met her one fateful day in the 1930s

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Surname Saturday: Filbee

28 July 2012, at 10:01 pm

A reader’s question prompted me to revisit my problematic Filbee family, whose fondness for the given name Hugh makes researching this line difficult.

The Filbee surname is found in my maternal grandfather’s part of the family tree. Alice Filbee, and generations of Filbees before her, lived and died in Lewknor, Oxfordshire. Alice (1748–1819) was my 5th great grandmother. She married William Quartermaine in Lewknor on Christmas Eve 1768. Their grandson was Thomas Smith, whom I’ve written about here.

In researching this surname over the years, I’ve come across many variations, including: Fylbye, Filby, Filbie, Fillby, Felby, Philby, Philbey. Filbee families were scattered all around Oxfordshire in the 17th-19th centuries, but my particularly confusing branch lived in Lewknor. From the parish register transcripts, it’s clear that, at any given time, there were two or more Filbee men living in the village, but I’m most interested in those named Hugh. There was a plethora of them. Here’s a chronology of Lewknor baptisms, marriages, and burials related to men named Hugh Filbee:

These St. Margaret’s register entries are extracted from the transcripts published by the Oxfordshire Family History Society which are available on CD–ROM through their website.

1674

Dec 22

Bap

Filbee Anne d Hugh & Anne

This may be the Hugh Fillby & Anne Burnham, of Tettsworth who married by license in nearby Thame 2 Dec 1673 (then left Thame)

1676

Dec 16

Bap

Filbee Hugh s Hugh & Anne

1675

Dec 4

Bap

Filbee Francis s Hugh & Anne

1682

Jun 15

Bap

Filbee Mary d Hugh 7 Anne

1686

Aug 9

Bap

Filbee Richard s Hugh & Anne

1688

Jul 28

Bur

FIlbee Ann w Hugh

1708

May 20

Mar

Filbee Hugh Chapman Ales Adwell

Adwell was nearby. This couple baptized their first child, son Hugh, at Adwell on 15 March 1708/9, and buried him there a week later.

1712

Apr 17

Bap

Filbee Mary d Hugh & Ales

1714

Aug 3

Bap

Filbee Alice d Hugh & Alice

1717

Apr 13

Bap

Filbee Elizabeth d Hugh & Alis

1719/20

Jan 15

Bap

Filbee Jane d Hugh & Ales

1719/20

Mar 12

Bur

Filbee Alis d Hugh & Alis

1722

Apr 27

Bap

Filbee Hugh s Hugh & Alice

1724

Feb 25

Bap

Filbee Alice d Hugh & Alice

1729

Oct 7

Bap

Filbee Judith d Hugh & Alice

1742

Dec 13

Bur

Filbee Hugh

1744/5

Mar 14

Bur

Filbee Alice

1748

Jun 29

Bap

Filbee Alice d Hugh & Anna–Maria

Hugh Filby and Anna Maria Waklin, both of Lewknor, were married in nearby Bix, Oxon, on 28 Jan 1747/8; 5 mo. before Alice’s bap.

1749

Sep 17

Bap

Filbee Hugh s Hugh & Anna–Maria

1751

Sep 17

Bap

Filbee Mary d Hugh & Anna–Maria

1753

Jul 15

Bap

Filbee Judith d Hugh & Anna–Maria

1755

Jun 1

Bap

Filbee John s Hugh & Anna–Maria

1757

Dec 24

Bur

Filbee Naria [sic] w Hugh the younger

1759

Feb 25

Bap

Filbee Ann d Hugh & Eve

1761

Nov 15

Bap

Filbee Jane baseborn d Hugh, and Eve Waklen

1764

Apr 9

Bap

Filbee James baseborn s Hugh and Eve Waklen

1766

Jun 29

Bap

Filbee Richard baseborn s Hugh, and Eve Waklen

1767

Jan 14

Bur

FIlbee Hugh

Probably Alice’s widow

1769

Jan 3

Bap

Filbee Anna Maria basborn d Hugh and Eve Waklen

1769

Apr 17

Mar

Filbee Hugh Slaughter Alice botp

Wm Quartermaine Wit

1771

Aug 18

Bap

Filbee Hugh s Hugh & Alice

1772

May 1

Bur

Filbee Hugh

1776

Jun 16

Bap

Filbee John and Elizabeth twin ch Hugh & Alice

1779

Jan 17

Bap

Filbee Thomas s Hugh & Alice

1782

Mar 3

Bap

Filbee John s Hugh & Alice

1819

Dec 29

Bur

Waklin Eve 92

1823

May 31

Bur

Filbee Hugh 74

Birth abt 1749

This week, I received copies of probate records from the Oxfordshire Records Office, which shed some light on how the Hughs fit together. I’ll be posting about those later in the week. See more here.

5 comments to Surname Saturday: Filbee

Morning!
I found your website this morning. My name is Quartermaine, Alice Filbee and William Quartermaine were my 4th Great Grandparents. I believe that Anna-Maria Waklin was Alice’s mother (1725-1757), they married in Bix 1747.
William and Alice had 11 children, I think: John 1769-1853; Benjamin 1771-1852; Anna-Maria 1773; William 1775-1857; Stephen 1777- ; Ann 1779-1780; Thomas 1781 – ; Elizabeth 1784 – Richard 1784 – 1835 -; Ann 1787 – ; Abraham 1790 – 1834.
Having seen Hugh’s will, I need to revisit his off-spring. I have Alice, Hugh, Mary, Judith and a John and then some other possible children by a second wife: Ann, Jane, James, Richard and Anna-Maria. No sign of Henry or Elizabeth. I am currently trying to get some order of the Filbee family. As you say, they are quite spread out in Oxfordshire with the name Hugh being especially popular!

My theory is this:
After Anna-Maria died, Hugh and Eve, Anna-Maria’s younger sister, had a long lasting relationship that produced the other children. Ann and Jane are mentioned in the will. Eve’s death is registered in her maiden name and I can find no evidence of a marriage.

Regarding Hugh and Eve’s long standing relationship, with its four “spurious” births, I have the same theory in my notes. However, I don’t think the Hugh Filbee who made a will in 1756 and died around 1767, is the husband of Anna-Maria and lover of her sister Eve, mainly because the dates are wrong, and I don’t think he’s the Hugh born in 1722, of Hugh and wife Alice/Ales, or the father Hugh (wife Alice/Ales) because of the discrepancies between the children’s names in the parish register and the children named in the 1756 will. I’m going to write a post with a chart comparing wills, birth and death records, as I think that will highlight the holes, one being the son Henry. I’m looking forward to learning what you can make of it all

[...] men named Hugh Filbee dating back to the earliest entries. I wrote about the Lewknor register in this post. In 1585, Hugh Filbee and his wife Alice (of course) baptized son William at Adwell. Jump ahead [...]